Extended Operational and Trade Vocabulary

Superyacht Industry, Builders and Brokers glossary (page 2)

Vocabulary of the superyacht sector’s builders and brokerage: custom steel and aluminum yards such as Abeking and Rasmussen, Admiral Yachts and Acico, their flagship deliveries, the agents handling clearance and provisioning, and the design, deck-layout and charter terminology used in the construction, sale and operation of large pleasure craft.

398 defined terms.

Showing 148 on this page (page 2 of 2).

P

Palm Beach International Boat Show: Annual March in-water show in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Palmer Johnson: US yacht builder formerly in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, later building sportyachts in Italy.
Palumbo Superyachts: Naples based group operating Columbus Yachts, ISA Yachts, and Mondomarine brands.
Passenger Yacht Code: PYC, the Lloyd's Register and Red Ensign Group rule set permitting yachts to carry up to 36 passengers.
Patti Yacht Sales: US broker.
Pelorus: Sighting device with compass rose for taking relative bearings.
Pen Duick: Series of yachts associated with Eric Tabarly.
Pendennis Shipyard: Falmouth, UK builder and refit yard for sailing and motoryachts.
Perini Navi: Italian sailing-yacht builder in Viareggio, with assets acquired by The Italian Sea Group.
Pershing: Italian planing-sportyacht brand in Mondolfo, part of the Ferretti Group.
Philippe Briand: French naval architect of large sailing and motoryachts including Vertigo.
Philippe Starck: French designer of yachts including Steve Jobs's Venus and Andrey Melnichenko's A and Sailing Yacht A.
Picchiotti: Italian builder absorbed into Perini Navi then Italian Sea Group.
Pillar boxing: Subdivision arrangement under PYC for damage stability.
Pleasure yacht: Yacht used solely for the owner's personal enjoyment, with reduced class requirements compared to commercial yachts.
Premier: Term applied to flagship models in production lines.
Princess Yachts: UK production yacht builder in Plymouth.
Production yacht: Series built yacht with fixed specification and limited options.
Project name: Internal builder reference, often the only public identifier until handover, examples being Sassi (Feadship 1010), Pinnacle (Lurssen), and Halo.
Proteksan-Turquoise: Predecessor name of Turquoise Yachts.
Pump room: tanker compartment housing cargo pumps.
PYC 2025: Updated edition of the Passenger Yacht Code by Lloyd's Register.

Q

Q4: Boat International segment ranking of yachts in the top quartile of new builds.
QM2 effect: Industry shorthand for the influence of cruise ship rule sets on large yacht regulation.
Quantum Blue: 104 m Lurssen delivered 2014, designed by Tim Heywood.
Queen Mary 2: Cunard ocean liner, delivered 2004, transatlantic flagship.
Queue: The sequence of tows waiting for a lock or other resource.

R

Radio Officer: Historic STCW radio operator role superseded by GMDSS operators.
Rasmussen, Henry: Co-founder of Abeking and Rasmussen.
Recyclability: Increasingly tracked under Hong Kong Convention and EU SRR for large yachts.
Red Ensign Group: Group of UK and British dependent flags coordinating standards.
Red Ensign Yacht Code: REG-YC, the harmonized commercial yacht code superseding LY3 from 2019 within REG registries.
Refit: Drydock or wet-dock period for cruise ship overhaul and revenue-area upgrades.
Registration: Process of flagging a yacht with a national administration, recording ownership and tonnage.
REV Ocean: 182.9 m Vard-built research expedition yacht for Kjell Inge Rokke.
Reverse osmosis: Membrane fresh water generator producing potable water from sea water.
Reymond Langton Design: UK yacht interior and exterior design studio.
RINA: Royal Institution of Naval Architects, London, founded 1860.
Riva: Italian builder in Sarnico, founded 1842, famed for runabouts including the Aquarama and Aquariva; part of the Ferretti Group.
Rolla Propellers: Swiss propeller manufacturer common to large motoryachts.
Rolls-Royce Marine: Marine equipment division (now Kongsberg Maritime) producing steering gear and propulsion equipment.
Rossinavi: Italian aluminum-superyacht builder in Viareggio.
Royal Denship: Defunct Danish yacht brand.
Royal Falcon Fleet: Yacht Plus and similar crewed charter brands.
Royal Huisman: Dutch sailing-superyacht builder in Vollenhove.
Royal Van Lent: Dutch Feadship yard in Aalsmeer and Kaag.
Rules for Yachts: Common term for ABS Guide for Building and Classing Yachts.

S

S/Y: Sailing Yacht prefix.
Sailing Yacht A: 142.81 m Nobiskrug-built sailing yacht delivered 2017 for Andrey Melnichenko.
Sam Sorgiovanni: Perth, Australia interior and exterior designer responsible for Excellence V and Imagine.
Sanctioning: US OFAC and EU asset freeze regimes that have detained several Russian-linked yachts since 2022.
Sanlorenzo: Italian builder in Ameglia, La Spezia, and Viareggio specializing in semi-custom motor yachts.
Sea Recovery: US manufacturer of marine reverse osmosis desalination systems for yachts and small craft.
Sea Trials: Pre-commissioning tests of naval vessels.
Seakeeper: Gyro stabilizer manufacturer.
Sealine: UK production motoryacht brand under HanseYachts.
Semi-custom: Yacht built on an existing platform with customizable interiors and limited exterior alterations.
Semi-displacement: Hull form between displacement and planing, typical of yachts in the 30 to 50 m range.
Serene: 134 m Fincantieri delivered 2011, designed by Espen Oeino, sold to Mohammad bin Salman in 2015.
Sergio Cutolo: Italian naval architect, founder of Hydro Tec, designer of CdM Darwin and Flexplorer.
Shadow vessel: Yacht support vessel carrying tenders, toys, and helicopters, examples being Wayfinder and Garcon.
Sherpa: Solar paneled Arcadia yacht range; also a Feadship 58 m delivered 2018.
SIA: Superyacht Industry Association.
Silver Yachts: Henderson, Western Australia builder of low resistance aluminum yachts including Bold and Silver Fast.
SMM Hamburg: Biennial Shipbuilding, Machinery and Marine Technology trade fair, founded 1963 by Hamburg Messe.
Solandge: 85.1 m Lurssen delivered 2013.
Solar yacht: Yachts with significant photovoltaic input, examples being the Arcadia Sherpa and Silent Yachts catamarans.
SOLAS: International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974; the IMO treaty setting minimum construction, equipment, and operation standards for merchant ships.
Solent rig: Sail plan with twin headsails sometimes used on larger yachts.
Sovereign: Global Marine cable ship, 130 m LOA, built 1991 as Toisa Sovereign, contracted to Atlantic Cable Maintenance Agreement from Portland UK.
Spirit of Tradition: Classic styled yachts built to modern standards, examples by Spirit Yachts in Ipswich.
St Tropez: Mediterranean port whose Vieille Port hosts superyachts during the summer season.
STCW 95/2010: International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping, the basis for yacht crew qualification.
Steel Class Series: Heesen's 65 m to 80 m all-steel hull program.
Struik and Hamerslag: Netherlands joinery specialist active in Feadship and Oceanco interiors.
Studio De Voogt: In-house design office of Feadship since 1913.
Sub-Charter: A charter granted by a charterer to a further charterer, generally back to back with the head charter.
Sunreef Yachts: Polish-based builder in Gdansk producing luxury sailing and power catamarans.
Sunseeker: Poole, UK production motoryacht builder founded 1969, owned by Lionheart Capital, with the Manhattan, Predator, and Ocean lines.
Superyacht Builders Association: SYBAss, the global builders association founded 2007 in Amsterdam.
SuperYacht Times: Industry news and data publication.
SuperyachtNews: Industry news service published by The Superyacht Group.
SY100: Boat International annual ranking of the world's 100 largest motoryachts.

T

Tankoa Yachts: Italian aluminum and steel superyacht builder in Genoa.
Tatoosh: 92.4 m Nobiskrug delivered 2000 to Paul Allen.
Technical Superintendent: Shore-based ship maintenance manager.
Tecnomar: Italian Sea Group brand including the EVO and Lamborghini 63.
Tender: Small boat ferrying guests between ship and shore at anchor ports.
Tender garage: Internal compartment for stowing tenders.
Terence Disdale: Richmond, UK based designer of Pelorus, Al Salamah, and Octopus interiors.
The Italian Sea Group: Holding of Admiral, Tecnomar, Perini Navi, Picchiotti, and Columbus brands, listed in Milan since 2021.
Tim Heywood Design: UK exterior-design studio responsible for many Lurssen-built superyachts.
Topaz: 147 m Lurssen delivered 2012 to Mansour bin Zayed.
Total loss: Actual or constructive total loss for insurance purposes.
Trade Winds: Persistent easterly winds in the tropics.
Transponder: Satellite payload subsystem that receives, frequency-translates, amplifies, and retransmits signals.
Trimble: Brand of dynamic positioning systems used on some superyachts.
Trinity Yachts: US superyacht builder formerly in Gulfport, Mississippi, and New Orleans.
Trumpy: Historical American gentleman's yacht builder.
Tug operations: Required at many ports for yachts above certain GT for berthing.
Turquoise Yachts: Turkish builder in Istanbul producing custom steel and aluminum superyachts.

U

U Boat Worx: Breda, Netherlands manufacturer of personal submersibles common on explorer yachts.
Ulysses: 116.2 m Kleven Verft (with Fincantieri brand association) delivered 2016 to Graeme Hart, with helicopter hangar.
Underwater lights: LED transom and hull lights for nighttime ambience and visibility.
United Yacht Sales: US brokerage network.
Unrestricted service: Operational notation without ocean-area restriction.
Usufruct: Civil law ownership structure occasionally used to hold yachts in continental Europe.
UTC: Coordinated Universal Time; AIS timestamps are referenced to UTC seconds.

V

Vajoliroja: Wally 50 m sailing yacht.
Valuation: Brokerage valuation typically referencing the Boat International index and recent comparables.
Van Geest Design: Naval architecture practice in the UK.
Vard: Norwegian shipbuilder, builder of REV Ocean.
Variable-pitch propeller: Synonym for CPP, with hydraulically variable blade pitch.
VAT yacht leasing: Maltese and Italian schemes that historically lowered effective VAT for cruising yachts.
VIP cabin: Guest stateroom typically equivalent in size to the master, usually located on the main deck.
Vitruvius Yachts: Philippe Briand's series of long range motoryachts, examples being Galileo G and Najiba.
Vitters Shipyard: Dutch sailing-superyacht builder in Zwartsluis.
Voyage Planning: The structured process of planning a passage from berth to berth covering appraisal, planning, execution, and monitoring stages.
Vripack: Sneek, Netherlands naval architecture and design firm.

W

Wally: Monaco based builder founded by Luca Bassani Antivari in 1994, acquired by Ferretti Group in 2019, producing wallypower, wallytender, and the carbon WallyCento sailing yacht line.
Wallytender: Series of high performance day boats from the Wally brand.
WAY-PYC: REG Yacht Code subset for passenger yachts.
Westport Yachts: US production superyacht builder in Hoquiam, Washington.
Wetheralls Yacht Brokers: UK based brokerage.
WHA Yachts: Smaller German shipyard.
Wider Yachts: Italian builder of diesel electric and Genesi crossover yachts.
Winch Design: London studio led by Andrew Winch.
Worth Avenue Yachts: US brokerage based in Palm Beach with global offices.

X

X-class: Cadeler vessel class encompassing Wind Orca and Wind Osprey.
Xanadu: Common past name applied to several superyachts.
Xhibitionist: Speculative Gray Design concept yacht.
Xtreme: Sunreef multihull power range branding.

Y

Y.CO: London and Monaco-based brokerage, charter, and management firm founded 2003.
Yacht Carriers: Shipping firms such as DYT Yacht Transport (now Sevenstar) carrying yachts on heavy lift ships.
Yacht Club de Monaco: Yacht owner's club whose Foster designed building anchors the Port Hercule superyacht scene.
Yacht Code: Common term for the Large Yacht Code adopted by Red Ensign Group registries for commercial yachts above 24 meters.
Yacht Management Company: Firm providing crew, regulatory, and financial management for owners, examples being Burgess, Edmiston, Y.CO, and Fraser.
Yacht Plus: Brand once associated with Aluminium Yachts ownership.
Yacht Support: Damen Yacht Support 53 to 75 m series for tender and helicopter logistics.
Yachting Pages: Industry directory of suppliers.
Yachting Partners International: YPI, brokerage based in Monaco.
Yardco: Common contract counterparty name for builds where ownership is held in a special purpose vehicle.
Yare: La Spezia held refit and aftercare event.
Yas (yacht): 141 m converted Dutch warship.
YS Yachts: Smaller specialist builder.

Z

Zeelander Yachts: Dutch lobster style motoryacht builder.
Zero-speed stabilizer: Stabilization system effective at anchor as well as underway.
Zeus pod drive: Mercury Marine's pod drive used on smaller superyachts.